Latest News

Hawkesbury trainer Jason Attard has enlisted Derby winning jockey Damian Lane to help him win Saturday’s Provincial Championships Final (1400m) at Royal Randwick.

Attard has booked Lane to replace suspended Glyn Schofield on Reiby Rampart in the $400,000 feature on the second day of The Championships. Melbourne-based Lane won last Saturday’s Group 1 Australian Derby (2400m) on New Zealand three-year-old Jon Snow at Randwick.

Schofield partnered Reiby Rampart both when a luckless third to another Hawkesbury representative Shazee Lee in the $150,000 qualifier at Attard’s home track on March 2 and in an impressive Benchmark 67 Handicap (1300m) victory against her own sex at Broadmeadow last Wednesday.

Left: Reiby Rampart (Blaike McDougall) after scoring on his home track in February. Image by - Bradley Photographers

Ironically, he was outed on a careless riding charge after he partnered Newcastle-trained Knit ‘N’ Purl in the Kembla Grange qualifier (transferred to Goulburn because of wet weather) on March 23.

Schofield’s appeal was heard last Friday and, though he was successful in getting a slight reduction (one day) on his penalty, it wasn’t sufficient for him to be able to ride on Saturday.

Attard is in hot form – he landed a double (with Reiby Rampart and Senorita De Vega) at the Broadmeadow meeting – and again at Scone on Monday, with Sacamano and Kiarra Rose.

And he is looking forward immensely to the Provincial Championships Final with his very first runner. Reiby Rampart, a four-year-old mare by Shaft, is raced by Hawkesbury Race Club vice-chairman Syd Kelly and his wife Carolyn.

Attard, a young trainer on the rise, is enjoying his best season both in terms of winners and prizemoney, and a Provincial Championships victory would give him the richest success of a relatively brief career. He had never previously trained a winner at Scone, and left with his first double at the track.

Sacamano (Koby Jennings) won the 4YO + Maiden Plate (1300m) as the $2.80 favourite, whilst expatriate South African Keagan Latham partnered Kiarra Rose ($7.50) in the Benchmark 55 Handicap (1600m). A four-year-old by Golden Slipper winner Sebring, Sacamano has had a belated start to his career and was having only his second start.

Although the going appeared better out wider in the straight, Jennings considered he was on the best horse in the race and stayed nearer the inside. The gelding was too strong for Calabash Express ($4.60) and Me Auld Segotia ($21).

Kiarra Rose has had a couple of trainers, and was having only her third start since joining Attard’s team. Latham followed the trainer’s instructions to the letter and got her home convincingly ahead of $41 roughie Scruff and $3.60 favorite Lady Evelyn.